Gabriel just nodded and took a larger bite of meat off the rib and a swig of his drink to show the stranger he was not scared of him.
“That’s a fine drum ye have there. A drummer boy, are ye? I’m slick enough to figure that one, I am. We used to take a drummer boy with us on our raids at sea. Fine, brave young men, every one of ’em. Me, now, I was never a drummer boy. I had a sword and a musket in my hand since I can first remember. It was my kin’s way. Thomas the Terrible is what they always called me.”
“Your name is Thomas the Terrible?” asked Gabriel.
“Aye. My name is Thomas Tew the Third, to be more precise,” said the man. They call me Thomas the Terrible. I was named after my grandfather, Thomas Tew. Sailed the West Indies in the service of the king. The French and the Spaniards called him a pirate, they did. A fine man, though I never knew him. Came back to settle in Rhode Island with riches untold.”
Gabriel looked in silence at Thomas. He did not look like the grandson of a wealthy man. He was dressed in rags, and Gabriel knew he could not have bathed in months. Gabriel wondered what happened to his Grandfather’s riches but thought better of asking. “Never talk to people about their wealth,” his father would tell him.
But as if Thomas could read Gabriel’s thoughts, he said, “What happened to my riches, ye ask?”
“I . . . uh . . . well,” Gabriel stuttered, “No sir, I mean I didn’t ask, but I was thinking about it.”
“HA! A more honest lad I’ve yet to meet,” said Thomas, almost shouting. He held up his mug to take another drink, forgetting he had already drained it with his last swig. He slammed it down on the table, waved his hand to Mr. Fletcher, and shouted. “Get over here with more cider for me and this fine lad, Fletcher!” Gabriel had barely touched his mug but decided not to say anything.
“If I’m going to be telling ye the story of the Captain Thomas Tew and buying ye drinks, I at least ought to know your name.”
Gabriel felt a little embarrassed he hadn’t introduced himself. “Gabriel Cooper, sir. I’m from New York, and I’m on my way to Cambridge to join the militia as a drummer.”
“Fine, fine . . . That’s a fine name, Gabriel, and a gentleman, I can tell. There’s not a more worthy supper companion I could’ve asked for. Why, if King George III himself came to sup at this here tavern and asked to have your place at this table, I would tell him to kindly look elsewhere, Your Majesty.” Thomas peered at Gabriel with a thin grin, revealing a gleaming gold tooth.
Fletcher came to the table and plopped two more mugs down. Thomas snatched his up and took a hearty gulp, shaking his head as the liquor swelled and burned from his mouth to his eyes.
“Now let me tell ya about me grandpappy, the Captain Thomas Tew. Captain Tew was a privateer most of his life and made a right fine livin’ of it. He lived in the Providence Plantations all of his days and raided against French and the Spaniards from Bermuda to La Tortuga. All of the raids were under authority of the king of England, as we was at war with France and Spain. Things were good for Tew and his crew, until England made peace with Spain. Then the capture and plunder of the Spaniard vanished. Tew was left only to attack French vessels, which were many a time heavily guarded by warships and didn’t have the vast treasures of the Spaniards.”
Gabriel had only read of the privateers’ adventures at sea. He was mesmerized by Thomas Tew’s story.
“I’m not boring you now, am I, boy?” asked Thomas.
“No, sir, no. Please tell me more.”
“Well then, Captain Tew heard tell of Arabian ships laden with gold, spices, and precious jewels that sailed the Indian Ocean. There were no gunboats to protect these treasure ships. He must’ve thought they were apples, ripe for the picking. So when the King asked Captain Tew to sail the Amity to raid French ships off the coast of Africa, my grandfather had another destination in mind. Instead of goin’ to Africa, they could sail to the Indian Ocean, where great, unprotected riches awaited. Enough plunder to send each one of ’em home to the Colonies never to have to work again. My grandfather, rest his soul, was a great leader. Every one of those crewmen agreed to head to the Indiana Ocean in disregard of the king’s mission to Africa. It’s that same ambitious spirit — not bein’ afraid of a high and mighty king — that’s drivin’ this here war, if you ask me,” said Thomas, raising his mug once more.
After taking a swig, he continued, “It was off to the Indian Ocean that the Amity sailed. Word is they spent months looking for this promised Arabian treasure. The crew was surely gettin’ agitated at Captain Tew, but he kept ’em to the task and, sure enough, the very day they agreed to turn the Amity’s sails homeward, the promised bounty of gold was before their eyes. The Arabian ship they were after had departed from the Red Sea, loaded with treasure beyond belief. Captain Tew needed only to fire a few warnin’ blasts from his cannon before the treasure ship surrendered its cargo. And oh, the riches to be found,” said Thomas with his eyes twinkling in a dreamy state.
“What was it?” asked Gabriel, trying to snap Thomas back to attention.
“Gabriel, me lad, there was precious jewels of rubies, sapphires, emeralds, and pearls; there were fine silks and spices worth thousands of the king’s sterling; and then there was gold and silver — more gold and silver than you can imagine. They took all that plunder back to the island of Madagascar, off the coast of Africa, where they split it up fair and square among the crew. There was so much to go ’round not one man complained of his take. The crew sailed back home to Rhode Island in 1694, and Captain Tew was given a hero’s welcome. He built a big house, enjoyed the company of important people, and raised his family, which included my father, the son of Captain Tew his self.”
Here, Thomas paused and drained the mug then set it firmly back on the table. Gabriel was enthralled by the story, but his question about what happened to the treasure had been left unanswered. “What happened to all the treasure?” he asked timidly.
Thomas sat across the table, looking at Gabriel intently, and did not say a word. Gabriel wondered if maybe he should not have asked that question, since Thomas had a strange look in his eye. Softly, almost whispering, Thomas said, “Gabriel, a keen lad you are, indeed. Most boys your age would have been so lost in my story of pirates and plunder and treasure they would have forgotten all about the question at hand. You, however, are different than most boys your age. You want to know what happened to the treasure, do ye? Your honesty and keenness should be rewarded, so I’ll tell you what happened to Captain Tew’s treasure. But only if you swear a solemn oath on the holy word of God should you find the missin’ treasure, you’ll return half of it to me, it’s rightful owner.”
Mysteriously, Thomas the Terrible produced from his coat pocket a small Bible, which he set before Gabriel. Gabriel sat stunned, questions swirling in his head. Thomas the Terrible carried a Bible? His grandfather’s treasure was missing, and Gabriel might be able to find it? Was the treasure nearby? Why hadn’t Thomas found it? Coming to his senses, he slid his hand over on top of Thomas’ bible and said, “I swear.”
“Very well, now where was we,” said Thomas with a strange lightness in his voice.
“The treasure?” responded Gabriel.
“Gabriel, me lad, if ye be thinkin’ Captain Tew spent it all, then you’re dead wrong. One man could not have spent all that wealth in one lifetime, even if he tried. But riches can be a poison that seeps slowly through a person’s veins until they’ve lost all sense of themselves. Captain Tew, I believe, had a bit of that poison in him, for he began thinkin’ everyone was out to steal his money. He kept most of it locked up in a safe, and he sat by it day and night. Then one day, Captain Tew got the idea that the best thing to do was to use his money to buy up as much land as he could. His thinkin’ was that no one can steal land. Once you own the title to it, it’s yours. But it was this quest for land that led to Captain Tew’s demise.
“Captain Tew heard there was good land for sale north in Massachusetts, so one fine O
ctober day, he set out alone on horseback with a good chunk of his gold and silver in a sack. He was goin’ to make a huge land purchase. He insisted on traveling alone so no one would know what he was up to. He was to meet a man in Boston to complete the purchase, so he traveled along this very road that you’re travelin’ on, Gabriel.
“He was not far from Boston when bandits attacked. Captain Tew was not one to give up without a fight. He ran one of the bandits through with his sword and burst into the underbrush of the woods to escape the others. He rode until he came to the Charles River and soon realized he couldn’t cross. So he rode up the river and reached the foot of a steep cliff, where a waterfall came flowing and crashing down up the rocks in front of him. He climbed off his horse and grabbed his bag of gold and silver, slingin’ it o’er his back. The bandits rode up and saw him tryin’ to escape. They fired their muskets at him as he scaled the rocky cliff, but Tew reached the top unharmed.”
“The bag of gold and silver now weighed heavy on his shoulder, and he knew he could not continue much longer with the bag of treasure. So he found a giant oak tree near the bank of the Charles River with a hollow at the base of its tangled roots. Captain Tew stuck the bag inside and carved a letter “T” in the trunk with his sword. All of this took time, and that’s all the bandits needed to find a path around the steep cliff up to where he now stood. On horseback, they stamped up to him, their muskets drawn to shoot, but one of them noticed Captain Tew no longer had his sack of treasure. My grandfather keenly told them he had thrown it into the river, and then he jumped in his self before the bandits knew what to do. My poor grandfather was carried away by the swift current toward the waterfall. As he looked behind, he saw the bandits enter the river on horseback, looking for the treasure. Then he toppled over the waterfall, where he was dashed upon the rocks.”
“He was found by a traveler, washed up on the banks o’ the Charles a day or so later. He was still alive, but just barely. They took Captain Tew to a doctor in Boston, who was unable to save him. Many years later in my search for his treasure, I found that doctor and asked him what my grandfather told him. The old doctor told me the story I just told you. It was one of the most amazin’ deathbed stories he had ever heard. The doctor counted it as mindless jibber from a dying man, but I know better, Gabriel. I know Captain Tew hid his treasure in the hollow of a giant oak tree near the banks of the Charles, just upstream from a waterfall.”
“You’ve surely looked for it?” asked Gabriel.
“Aye, I’ve looked for it, Gabriel, but I haven’t found it. As for the rest of the treasure Captain Tew left, my father squandered it on ships, liquor, and women. There was but a little left for me, and I can’t say I’ve fared much better than my father.”
Gabriel felt sorry for the ragged man sitting in front of him.
“Gabriel, I’m gettin’ too old to be tromping around lookin’ for treasure. I’ve even changed some of my terrible ways in my old age, which is why I carry the Holy Scriptures with me. I’ve been waitin’ for some time now to find someone who I might tell this to. I don’t know what it is, but I sense the good Lord has sent you here to sit at this table and hear this story. It may be you’re meant to look for the treasure.”
Gabriel nodded his head. “I could look for the treasure on my way, but I can’t be delayed too long. I may have already missed my chance to join the militia.”
“The Charles River,” said Thomas, “nears the road about a day’s walk from Marlborough. You can hear it from the road. When ye do hear it, leave the road and follow it north. I have seen more than one waterfall, but I haven’t been able to explore them all. I would look not far from the town of Cambridge, just east of Boston.”
“There’s one more thing you should know,” said Thomas whispering. “While no one but me and you knows the true story about my grandfather, there’s still plenty o’ legends ’bout his death. Most people think he was struck down and killed by the bandits who stole away with his treasure, and so they say the ghost of Thomas Tew walks the banks of the Charles River at night with his sword in hand, looking for revenge. I tell you this not to scare ye lad, but just so ye know.”
Gabriel shuddered at this thought and wished Thomas had not told him this part of the story. He felt both thrilled and apprehensive. What if Thomas the Terrible was as crazy as he looked? But what if he wasn’t, and there really was treasure?
Well, he thought, I’ve heard this strange story for some reason, treasure or not, and I’m headed to Boston. What harm could there be in looking for this poor man’s lost treasure along the way?
“I will look for it,” said Gabriel, smiling.
“A good lad, ye are,” responded Thomas. “A good lad . . . and don’t worry nothin’ about that ghost.”
H 15 H
THE GHOST
OF THOMAS TEW
Thunder crashed outside the small window of the tavern. Gabriel saw the flash of lightning and the rain pelting down. He dreaded heading out into the storm. As he savored the last bites of meat and bread, he decided to wait inside the tavern until the owner told him he must leave.
Thomas had dozed off, his head face-down on the table. After finishing his food, Gabriel dozed off, too, but was not sure how long he had been asleep when Fletcher came up to him and shook him awake. “Lad, here’s the dried meat and bread I promised you. I’ve let you stay here till the storm cleared outside, but I need to lock up now, and you need to be on your way.”
Gabriel yawned and stretched. Looking across, he could see Thomas. He was snoring, still face-down on the table. Fletcher leaned over to shake Thomas now. “Wake up, Tew. Wake up!” he shouted, much more abruptly than he had dealt with Gabriel. “Time for you to move on now.”
Thomas stuttered and spat, then rose up from the table in a complete stupor, patted Gabriel on the back, gave him a wink, and without saying a word, walked out the door. Still groggy, Gabriel took the pack from the owner and tried to determine the weight of its contents. It didn’t seem too heavy, and he only hoped it would be enough to get him through to Boston now that he had no money. That, of course, could all change with Thomas Tew’s treasure.
Gabriel stepped out into the night. A light rain fell, and he could see a few flashes of lightning lingering in the east. The rainwater ponded all along the road, and Gabriel knew they must have just gotten another torrential downpour. The Charles River would be up, he was sure of that.
He was tired and needed to sleep. There was a small covered porch on the front of the tavern. He would stay put and curl up out of the rain. The tavern owner won’t mind, he thought.
He fell asleep quickly, but the morning sun seemed to rise just as fast. He rubbed his still-tired eyes and stretched his stiff bones.
He was close now. He could feel it. Only one day’s walk to the river, and then another day or two before he would be looking for Nathaniel Greene and his band of Rhode Island militia. Not wanting to waste any more time in Marlborough, he set off down the road. As he strode out of town, he wondered where Thomas the Terrible had taken off to last night. Gabriel had gone out the door of the tavern just a minute behind Thomas, but there was no sign of the man. He must have a house some place nearby, he thought.
The more distance Gabriel put between himself and Marlborough, the stranger the man’s story seemed to him. It was like waking from a dream that at first seems real, but begins to fade the longer you’re awake. He was having doubts about whether he should really follow through on his promise to look for the treasure on his way to Boston. What if it took him so far out of his way that he ran out of food? He was already hungry from his morning of walking, so he stopped off the road for a bite to eat. Peering into the small cloth bag, he saw how meager his provisions really were. The food would only last a few days, and that would be stretching it.
Gabriel took some nourishment, found a small pool of fresh rainwater to drink from, and set back down the road. If he didn’t hear the sound of the river along the road as Thomas said he wo
uld, he would not stray from the path to look for the treasure. Just as he made this decision, the faint sound of gurgling water came to his ear. He almost wished he hadn’t heard it, but there it was, growing louder with every step.
It was late afternoon. He stood in the road, listening to the unmistakable sound of rushing water. He knew what he had told Thomas the Terrible, and he couldn’t back away now. He had to leave the road and follow the river. He stepped off the path into a densely wooded area with enormous trees that created an interwoven canopy of leaves and branches. He turned and took one last look at the road — the road that would take him to Cambridge where the militia was camped. Then he turned back to the dark woods and strode ahead toward the sound of flowing water.
Passing under the canopy of green overhead, Gabriel found the river, swollen and nearly cresting its banks. He would have to bushwhack along the river, as brush, bramble, and vines were growing on the forest floor beneath the canopy of the large trees. He paused for a moment to take in the different kinds of trees — walnut, hickory, sycamore, cherry, poplar, some pine, and numerous large oak. How would he ever find a single oak with a “T” carved in the bark?
Walking along the river, Gabriel pressed his way through the brush, sometimes needing to take out his knife to cut away at some thorn bushes blocking his path. He was thankful he had saved his knife and drum but still lamented the fact that he lost nearly everything else in the raging river. Was this the same river that had stolen his coins in the flood? Was this the river Thomas the Terrible meant? Would it take him to Cambridge as Thomas claimed?
Gabriel walked along the river’s edge the rest of the afternoon. Making slow progress, he came across two very small waterfalls that only dropped a few feet. There was no steep cliff to scale, so he quickly dismissed any thought that these would be the waterfalls where Captain Tew left his treasure.
The Drum of Destiny Page 11
